Episodes

In this final episode of the season, we’re doing something a bit different. (Please note, no explicit details are mentioned, but use caution if you listen with children as we do discuss things they may be exposed to as they start to use the internet more widely.) We originally planned an episode focused on internet safety and online security… and then real life happened. We were away at our annual home ed camp, the world took over, and we decided to lean into the learning that was already happen...

In this bonus episode of The BIG Home Ed Conversations, Kelly Rigg is joined by Dr. Chris Bagley — educational psychologist, musician, author, and co-founder of States of Mind (with B. Herbert). Together, they unpack why so many young people are “not ok at school” — and what happens when an education system prioritises compliance, metrics, and control over human development, agency, and real connection. Chris shares why States of Mind is “allergic” to tokenistic ideas like “pupil voice” when t...

In this week’s episode of The BIG Home Ed Conversations Podcast, Kelly Rigg and Ashley Vanerio dive into a big question many home educating UK families wrestle with: how do we teach our children about activism, justice, and using their voice — without overwhelming them? We talk honestly about: Why “quiet protest” (like choosing elective home education) is still activism How kids can learn courage, integrity, and a strong moral compass through everyday life Exploring activism through books, do...

In this chatty catch-up episode, Kelly Rigg and Ashley Vanerio reflect on what home education can look like as summer approaches — when clubs pause, routines shift, and the calendar suddenly feels wide open. Together, they explore the different ways families plan (or don’t plan) through summer, how guilt can creep in around “what we’ve achieved this year,” and why many home educating parents eventually find a calmer rhythm — especially when they start trusting that learning doesn’t stop just be...

Welcome back to The BIG Home Ed Conversations Podcast with Kelly Rigg and Ashley Vanerio. This week’s topic: Feelings and journaling (real life edition) We recorded in the middle of a heatwave, so we’re talking dysregulation, grumpy kids, and how hard it can be to “do the right thing” when everyone’s overstimulated. What we actually found helpful: A feelings wheel (free printable) to help kids find more precise words than just “angry/sad” A simple empathy prompt: “How do you think your sibling...

In this episode of The BIG Home Ed Conversations Podcast, Kelly and Ashley continue their weekly home education UK “topic challenge” — choosing a theme and exploring it with their children through real-life learning, conversation, and curiosity-led activities. This week’s topic: Town planning and street furniture — and it turns into a brilliant mix of project-based learning, local community awareness, and practical thinking about how towns work (and who decides what gets built). Whether you’re...

In this episode of The BIG Home Ed Conversations Podcast, Kelly shares a powerful interview with Jenn Hodge, founder of Doing Education Differently. Jenn is a leading voice in neurodiversity and education reform, and has been at the forefront of challenging the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill — which has now become the Act. Together, Kelly and Jenn talk through what’s happening, why it matters, and what families should be paying attention to as the Act begins to come into effect. This co...

In this episode of The BIG Home Ed Conversations Podcast, Kelly and Ashley explore this week’s “topic from the hat” challenge: lesser known sports. They start by going down the rabbit hole of strange and wonderful sports from around the world (and even a few from right here in the UK), and it quickly opens up bigger conversations about creativity, culture, community, and what sport is actually for. We chat about: The weird and wonderful sports humans have invented (and why some of them are genu...

Welcome back to another episode of the BIG Home Ed Conversations Podcast. Kelly and Ashley are continuing Season 5’s “topic from a hat” home education challenge — where they pick a theme, explore it with their kids for the week (without telling each other what they’re doing), then come back to compare notes, resources, and real-life learning. This week’s topic: Food Around the World — and it takes them way beyond “trying new recipes”, into geography, history, climate, farming, food miles, hunge...

Welcome back to the BIG Home Ed Conversations Podcast. In this episode, Kelly and Ashley share how they tackled a surprisingly big topic with their kids: capital allocation and investing — including spending vs saving, risk, impulse buying, and how money habits form early (for better or worse). In this episode, we chat about: Why this topic matters (and why most of us weren’t taught it!) Helping kids understand spend / save / invest / give Kelly’s “family token currency” experiment (spend po...

Welcome back to Season 5 of the BIG Home Ed Conversations Podcast. In this short “we’re back!” episode, Kelly Rigg (home ed mum of two, qualified mindset + ADHD coach) and Ashley Vanerio (home ed mum of three, former primary teacher) share what’s been happening behind the scenes, why we took a break, and what’s coming up next. This season we’re doing something a bit different: each week we’ll pick a random topic out of a hat, go away and explore it with our kids (without telling each other wha...